Travel Photography Footprint Travel Guides [Paperback]

This book really is a labour of love. I have wanted to write it for some time. In part, it is a retrospective of my work over the past dozen or so years of travelling. In part, it is an expansion of all the travel photography articles I have written, especially the regular features for Wanderlust magazine in the UK and Get Lost magazine in Australia. Freed from the constraints of a short magazine article I have, finally, been able to go into the depth I feel the subject needs. I hope you agree.

I learnt my trade shooting transparency film, where everything had to be spot on in the camera. Although in later years, I used to scan my transparencies on to a computer so that I could make certain changes and edits, the exposure and colour balance had to be right. What wasn't recorded on the slide, just wasn't there. I used colour correction filters to sort out the white balance and graduated filters to balance shadow and highlights; I calculated exposure manually with a spot meter, and there were times when the conditions were such that I couldn't shoot.

On a long trip I used to carry vast amounts of film and fuss over it like a mother hen, protecting it from heat, X-rays and loss. When I got home I paced nervously waiting for it to be processed and, then, pored over it, hunched over a lightbox, before embarking on the long process of editing, mounting and captioning. I used to get a thrill from the fact that the picture was created by light falling on this very piece of celluloid and causing a chemical reaction, just a few millimetres from my cheek!

Now, I almost exclusively shoot digital. I love digital photography. I love the immediacy, the cost, the speed of the process and the sheer quality. I love the fact that I can create back-up copies instantly and work on my images when I am away. With a digital camera, a laptop and an internet connection I can work and distribute my pictures from anywhere.

The vast majority of photographers now shoot digital and you will struggle to buy a new film camera. Yet, there is a significant minority that still shoots film and there is a good second-hand market for film cameras. When I lead a photo tour, it seems that out of a dozen people, a couple will be shooting film and they are often amongst the most serious photographers. Although this book is primarily aimed at the digital travel photographer, I have not ignored those still shooting film. Many of the photographic principles behind photography are the same whatever camera you are using; where there are differences in approach, I have identified them.

Where possible, I have included the lens and exposure details for each picture but, in many cases, this is simply not possible. Digital cameras record this information with each frame; film cameras don't. Some people claim to have written down exposure and lens details for every frame they shot on film, but I certainly didn't: I was too busy taking pictures.

Although I am covering different types of cameras, this book is not a replacement for your camera manual. I can tell you what the various functions of your camera might do and when you might use them but, with so many camera models on the market, you will need to consult your manual to ascertain just where these functions are located and how to use them in your individual case. I am assuming that you can already operate the basic functions, including simple controls, copying pictures to your computer or changing film. Although I have included some information about choosing and buying different styles of camera, I have tried to avoid countless pages of technical information. There are websites - notably the incomparable Digital Photography Review - that are able to do this in more depth and that can keep pace with advances in technology far better than me. I wanted to write a book teaching people how to take pictures, not how to buy cameras.

I have also taken the decision not to include `bad' pictures, illustrating poor exposure, focus and composition and a host of other mistakes. This is partly due to personal vanity and partly because I would like people to take pleasure from just flicking through this book, enjoying the pictures.

I hope this book is about more than just taking pictures. Photography is a fantastic motivator and should encourage you to get more out of your travels. It has done that for me. If this book conveys just a part of the excitement and wonder that I have experienced during my explorations over the past few years, then it will have succeeded.

Steve Davey